Check out your hotel before you check in

Hotel photographs inspired by the cinema classic – The Shining

Ever since seeing the 1980 classic film The Shining by Stanley Kubrick, hotel hallways have had slightly creepy feel about them for us at RoomCritic. If you’ve ever had to walk the length of a long hall in the middle of the night to get to your room you’ll know what we mean.

But, the weird feeling of stranger danger behind each door, the deafening silence and the overly bright strip lighting can actually make for some awesome photos. Just scroll through the #roomcritic gallery and you’ll find quite a few from our Instagram friends.

We compiled tips from 3 insomniac travelling photographers on how to take the perfect Kubrick – The Shining hotel hallway photo.

Tip number 1

Scope out your hotel to find the best hallway, the longer the hall the better. Usually hotels with a plain interior aesthetic are most effective. If the hotel you’re in doesn’t suit change hotels!

Tip number 2

Head back to your chosen hallway sometime after hours to ensure little chance of interruption as possible. Remember, the late night hotel hallway is even more creepy when some strange person is outside your door taking photos.

Tip number 3

Stand dead centre at one end of the hall and focus on the centre at the other end. Take a number of shots from different heights but make sure you get the best vanishing point down the hallway!

Tip number 4

Once you’ve taken your shot, spend the rest of the night editing your image. Depending on the hotel you may have to give it some HDR treatment. Try to bring out the best colours in the carpets and walls while still retaining some shadows.

Tip number 5

Once you are happy with your edit, line your shot up so you get the vanishing point where you want it in your crop. Make sure the wall angles are nice and even!

If you enjoy taking photos in the middle of the night of your hotel hallways, tag them to the #roomcritic and #hallway gallery so we can all check them out. For more Instagram photos of your favourite hotels, visit the new RoomCritic website. For the best travel stories, tips and info on the places to stay around the world, follow the blog by email or ‘like’ our RoomCritic Facebook page. Find us on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest plus we have hotel lists on Foursquare. Share your hotel stories or reviews with us: info (at) roomcritic (dot) com. If we post it on the blog, we’ll make sure you get the glory.